how long did you look

How long were you looking for your van before you found one that was within your price range and had the necessary fixtures etc?

In the months we have been looking we have only found two that really fit and have been gazzumped on both of them... My friend bought her first one when she wasn't even looking for one, saw it, fell in love and bought it.. I am beginning to feel that it is not going to happen before this summer unless we go for something that isn't really what we want. The ones we like or that are in an acceptable condition are usually way over our budget. We find others but find they are petrol ... and we are led to believe to go for deisel. Have started to consider a caravan as a better option, as either way we will need to pay for storage, and that won't add another road tax and mot to our bills.:Sad::Sad:

We looked for about 2 years as we wanted an end lounge 3.5t but couldn't find anything within budget that we liked.
Spoke to local dealer and asked them to let us know when something came in ( they are mainly caravan dealers) they got in a front dinnette that they thought within budget that they thought we would like although not end lounge as yes we liked it straight off as we had not considered one before, so keep an open mind about what you want.
Caravan yes you can probably get one for far less money but will it give you what you want ?? We have also considered one but feel they are fine if you are staying on a site for a week or so at a time but find MH gives you more flexibility especially for just going away for weekends which I don't think we would do with a caravan

Whatever you decide, do not pay over the odds, if it is your first van , you will be very lucky to get the right one, people on here always say you have to have three before you get the right one, so if you find one in good nick at the right price even if it isn't what you thought you were originally after have a go , you never know it might grow on you, and if not it will sort what you really need for your next one, and if it is the right price , you will stand to get most ,if not all your money back when you move on, tax isn't a problem as you can sorn it over the winter.
Get in and have a go :thumb:

:Sad:That's the problem ... we really didn't want to spend more than £7,000 as we have other hobbies too ... We could at a push go higher but with the way that everything seems to be going up would rather not go into debt really. (We might try and train our two cats t be van cats .. apparently some people do this.)

There are two of us, adults, but we also have our little two year old grand-daughter MOST of the time, and it might be that in the future we go for adoption .. don't want to go into that on here. The van would be used at weekends and then school holidays and whilst at the moment only in this country, we have relatives abroad and are considering whether once we get used to being van owners that might be a possibility.

I have back problems so cannot climb up and down ladders and also making up any couches into a bed would have to be simple. Hubby is RUBBISH with engines and we pay for everything to be done on the car so something which needs work on the engine is definitely out..

Reading back what I have written, I think I have answered my own question.:Sad: A caravan would be more appropriate.

Oh boy .... whilst I was typing with two fingers several more replies came in..:Laughing::Laughing: now back to hoping may find something. Wish I could take you all with us when we go out looking.. :Laughing:

Fully agree with the above post,[HI] sit down make a list of what you would like and length etc, [/HI]see what can be found, quite a few on here good at hunting out vans.

You seem to have set your mind on a motorhome and if you go down the route of car and caravan you may regret not giving the motorhome a go.

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We spent several weeks, visiting several dealers a number of times, before finding our first van, which met our requirements at the time.

When we had to get a replacement our requirements had changed somewhat and we knew more so wrote them down. The checklist we put together before purchasing our current van is Here (PDF opens in Acrobat Reader).

It is unlikely to match your requirements but it may help give you a start on creating your own list.

:Sad:That's the problem ... we really didn't want to spend more than £7,000 as we have other hobbies too ... We could at a push go higher but with the way that everything seems to be going up would rather not go into debt really. (We might try and train our two cats t be van cats .. apparently some people do this.)

There are two of us, adults, but we also have our little two year old grand-daughter MOST of the time, and it might be that in the future we go for adoption .. don't want to go into that on here. The van would be used at weekends and then school holidays and whilst at the moment only in this country, we have relatives abroad and are considering whether once we get used to being van owners that might be a possibility.

I have back problems so cannot climb up and down ladders and also making up any couches into a bed would have to be simple. Hubby is RUBBISH with engines and we pay for everything to be done on the car so something which needs work on the engine is definitely out..

Reading back what I have written, I think I have answered my own question.:Sad: A caravan would be more appropriate.

Thanks for taking time to answer. MH

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Seven grand get out and have a look at some around the 3 mark , plenty about , we bought our last one for £3000 went all round France , Italy , Spain, and pretty much all round Britain in it then sold it three years later for same as I paid for it.

Unfortunately we are in the north of Scotland so can't help you look (wish I could) but sure there are funsters near you who may well be willing to help you once you find something you like, keep looking and as I said earlier go to a local dealer tell them your budget and what you are looking for layout and ask them to look for you if something comes in let you know

Our first van was an old Autotrail 4 berth coachbuilt costing £4,500 was a good bit past its best, but showed us that we loved the M/H lifestyle and over the 18 month we had it we learnt alot about what we wanted in our next van and a fair bit about fixing stuff. We then upgraded and now 6 years later on our 4th and perfect van.

There is a small compass drifter coachbuilt just come or sale a few miles from me at £5995
Looks like they have upgraded as they also had a newer burstner on the drive as well now.
No idea on what it is like but I can tell you where it is in Leyland.

Anne

No matter how many mistakes you make
Or how slow you progress
You are still way ahead of everyone who isn't even trying.

Life's pleasures are meant to be enjoyed ...live for today we are not promised a tomorrow.

Others may scoff, but have a look at this on eBay
281299179277
Not suggesting you rush out and buy it but you can see what sort of thing is about, taxed and tested for the summer, ready to go:thumb::thumb:

i wouldn't worry about petrol or diesel theres not a massive difference in running costs nowadays, especially on a smaller van we used to get 24 mpg from a 2 litre petrol and now get 28/30 from a diesel and diesel is more expensive to buy

Oh boy .... whilst I was typing with two fingers several more replies came in..:Laughing::Laughing: now back to hoping may find something. Wish I could take you all with us when we go out looking.. :Laughing:

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Keep on track, there are lots of low budget vehicles out there, we found our Mercedes 310d Conversion when we met a couple in a local pub, its a 1999, 173,000 miles model with furniture inc, toilet/shower/fully fitted carpet etc. from an unwanted caravan, the bed is fixed at rear end (but can be converted back to seating in 5 mins) Send hubby on a basic mechanics course (they are to be found on-line) We bartered as we drank and found ourselves the new owners of this much loved motorhome the next morning after parting with £6,500, the hangover was a bonus! This is our 4th year motorhoming (we had a static in Scarborough previously) during which time we have been to France 3 times (a months touring at a time) and she has never let us down and we would never go back to caravanning after experiencing the freedom that motorhoming gives us. Each trip we do we find ourselves learning more and more which being in our seventies is an absolute joy i.e. putting an awning up for the 1st time was entertainment for a host of other motorhomers while my 'manager' (Gill) wet herself laughing especially when she spotted that I was trying to put the damn thing on inside out.
We wish you every success, just keep at it, you won't regret it.